06/07/2020 - 10:32
- Clarín.com
- World
Protests over the death of George Floyd in the United States continue. And this Sunday they also moved to Europe, where citizens of the main capitals raised the flag against racism and demanded justice for the crime of the African American citizen at the hands of the Police.
Rome, Madrid, Berlin and London were the epicenter of the mobilizations, some of which also recorded incidents, injuries and arrests.
In the British capital, a total of 14 officers were injured as a result of the fighting. The demonstration, fundamentally peaceful according to the Police itself, ended with a charge on horseback of the agents coinciding with the start of the riots.
London Police Chief Cressida Dick also reported 13 people arrested for the riots. "I am deeply saddened that a minority of protesters have fostered an atmosphere of violence in central London," said Dick, in statements collected by The Guardian .
In Rome, the capital of Italy, some 3,000 people demonstrated in Piazza del Popolo . The rally, which had been called by movements such as the Italian "sardines", was born spontaneously in protest against far-right policies, but also by other American associations and organizations in favor of human rights and against racism.
The performance of a group of activists in front of the United States Embassy, in Madrid. (EFE)
At the end of the demonstration, the attendees knelt, raised their fists, and remained in that position for 8 minutes and 46 minutes, exactly the same time that Floyd remained with a Minneapolis agent's knee on his neck, until he died.
Participants shouted Floyd's last words, "I can't breathe," in English, and then stood up and said phrases like "George is here, not racism" or "We are all anti-fascists," to applause.
The people of Madrid also concentrated in large numbers, and they did so in front of the United States Embassy. Called by the African Black Community of African descent in Spain, protesters displayed banners with names of black people killed by police in recent years: from Martin Luther King to George Floyd.
Shouting "No justice, no peace" and "Black lives matter", the protest was peaceful at all times.
Thousands of people broke the quarantine and, with their masks, gathered to protest. There were incidents at the end. EFE
"We are here denouncing the death of our brother, but also denouncing the racism that we are living here in Spain; we are from here, we live here, we sleep here; we do not want to be superior to anyone, we only want to fight for our rights and for the equality, "said the entity's spokesman, Thimbo Samb.
For their part, on Saturday night the citizens of Berlin took to the streets to protest against racism, although everything ended in the worst way: 93 people were arrested and 28 policemen were injured , the German Police reported.
According to official data, the arrests occurred for assault on property, resistance and aggression against law enforcement officers, attempted release of detainees, and noncompliance with containment regulations against the coronavirus.